The American billionaire, Bill Gates once said; ‘If you are born poor, it’s not your mistake, but if you die poor it’s your mistake.’
Many people, especially in Nigeria, usually attribute their status in life to the circumstances of their births and the inability of their parents to leave any wealth for them.
They are quick to blame their parents, family background, witches and wizards and everything except themselves for their poverty.
Here are the 14 reasons you will remain poor if you do not check yourself on time.
- Lacking Financial Discipline
Being financially disciplined is one of the surest ways of getting rich. Being disciplined financially has nothing to do with how much you make as your income but being able to manage what you make and still put some aside, no matter how small.
You should be able to save some parts of your salaries and income and discipline yourself on your spendings.
- Learning New things
Educating yourself, especially on matters, helps a lot and goes a long way to help you plan for your future.
There is a wealth of information out there that is just waiting for you, most of them free to access.
Always remember that formal education will make you a living while self-education will make a fortune for you.
- Giving Up As Soon As Difficult Times Come
It is a truism with the statement that winners never quit and quitters never win. Some people have a tendency of giving up at the slightest difficulty but anyone who wants to succeed in life will never give up but trudge on no matter where they find themselves.
Work with dedication and persistence so you may feel the exhilaration of victory.
- Always Looking For Get-Rich Schemes
Get-rich-quick schemes are always, often too good to be true and most times, they end up as scams.
The time, money, and effort that you are wasting in looking for these schemes should instead be spent on time-tested and sustainable strategies for becoming rich, which are frugality, investing, and entrepreneurship.
- Blaming Others For Your Situation
Most people end up blaming everything around them for their problems. The heap blames on the government, bosses, family, friends, society, evil spirits, and just about everything but themselves.
But in the end, know it that your personal economy is ultimately the outcome of your own actions and your grit to succeed is a major factor in achieving wealth.
- Spending Time With The Wrong People
The motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, is famous for his statement that a person is the average of the five people they spend the most time with. This means that if you spend time with five wrong people, you will become the sixth person.
But if you spend time with five right people, you become the sixth. What this simply means is that if you want to become rich, you should spend less time with people who are negative, lazy, and those who do not share the same dreams with you.
- Not Managing Your Fears
It is a fact that everyone has a fear of failure but those who ultimately succeed are those who go ahead to do it despite having those fears.
Learn how to increase your risk tolerance, quickly adapt to change, and work with unexpected outcomes and do not let your fears of what could happen be the reason why nothing ever happens in your life.
- Not Controlling Your Greed
Greed is an unhealthy addiction because it makes you want more than what’s necessary, which puts you at risk of losing what you already have.
Greed makes you want to get what you do not need and in trying to get those things, you could end up in illegality.
The best way to control your greed is to set financial goals so you will know how much is enough to fund your dreams.
- Not Having Big Goals
If you want to become rich, you must have goals that are big enough to scare you. People like staying within their comfort zones but unfortunately, nothing great ever grows in that zone.
If you want big things to happen in your life, then pursue goals that seem impossible to achieve. These will be the stories you’ll tell your grandchildren when you grow old.
Test your limits and you’ll discover that you’re capable of more things that you thought you couldn’t do.
- Lacking Focus
Every successful man or business has a product that first catapulted them to massive profits.
If you go through life without a goal or a sense of purpose, you will end up as an also-ran, someone who just came to this world to make up the numbers.
Behind every great product is someone who focused on developing them until it sold millions. Get rid of your spaghetti brain. Don’t work on too many goals and follow one course until it becomes successful.
- Waiting For A Miracle To Happen
Most people believe so much in miracles and would not mind going from one church to the other to seek for that miracle instead of putting their dreams into practice.
Especially with miracle and prosperity pastors all over the place, many think they will just pray and Manna will fall from Heaven for them. Remember that even the Bible says that heaven helps those who help themselves.
While praying for a miracle to happen, those who take steps are turning the stones and making impossibilities become possible
- Ask For Help When You Need It
Most poor people think they can do it all alone and refuse to seek assistance when the need arise.
Experience is the best teacher and learning from the experience of others is the best way to avoid making preventable mistakes. Achieving financial freedom is a long and difficult journey, but it becomes easier when you have role models and mentors guiding you.
- Lingering On Regret
Everyone makes mistakes: and we will continue to commit them no matter how hard we try. But when it happens, it is best to accept the consequence, learn the lesson, and do your best to move on.
Avoid having your thoughts linger on what should or could have been because the past is done, but the future is still there waiting for you.
- Simply Drifting Through Life
Many people are just drifting through life without a sense of purpose. They are content in living from day to day, taking life as it comes.
If your life hasn’t changed much in the past five years, then you’re probably too busy at work and not productive with your life, which are two different things.
Work will always be there, but the chance to pursue your passion and achieve your dreams won’t be. Stop procrastinating and start doing things.
